Politics of France - Unions and Leaders

Unions and Leaders

Workers' unions.

  • Confédération Générale du Travail (CGT): around 800,000 claimed members. It had traditional ties with the French Communist Party, but is currently tending more towards social-democratic views. 34.00%. General secretary : Bernard Thibault
  • Confédération Française Démocratique du Travail (CFDT): about 800,000 members. Considered to be close to the more reformist factions of the PS, and the first to sign with "patronat". 21.81%. General secretary : François Chérèque
  • Force Ouvrière (FO): 500,000 members. Anarcho-syndicalism to yellow syndicalism, depend of the union, split from the CGT (1947). 15.81%. General secretary: Jean-Claude Mailly
  • Confédération Française des Travailleurs Chrétiens (CFTC): 140,000 members. Christian reformist. 8.69%. President: Jacques Voisin
  • Confédération Générale des Cadres (CFE-CGC): Reformist, White-collar and executive workers union which claims 180,000 members. 8.19%. President : Bernard Van Craeynest
  • Union Nationale des Syndicats Autonomes (UNSA): 360,000 members. Reformist. 6.25%. General Secretary: Alain Olive
  • Solidaires Unitaires Démocratiques, (SUD): heir of the "Group of 10", a group of radical trade unions ("syndicalisme de lutte"), 110,000 members, 3.82% ;
  • Confédération Nationale du Travail (CNT): Anarcho-syndicalist trade union which claims 8,000 members

Employers' organisations.

  • Movements of French Corporations (Mouvement des Entreprises de France (MEDEF), formerly known as CNPF), sometimes referred to as patronat.
  • General confederation of the little and middle corporations ("Confédération Générale des Petites et Moyennes Entreprises") (CGPME), aligned its position to the MEDEF.

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Famous quotes containing the words unions and, unions and/or leaders:

    “When Hitler attacked the Jews ... I was not a Jew, therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the Catholics, I was not a Catholic, and therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the unions and the industrialists, I was not a member of the unions and I was not concerned. Then, Hitler attacked me and the Protestant church—and there was nobody left to be concerned.”
    —Martin Niemller (1892–1984)

    “When Hitler attacked the Jews ... I was not a Jew, therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the Catholics, I was not a Catholic, and therefore, I was not concerned. And when Hitler attacked the unions and the industrialists, I was not a member of the unions and I was not concerned. Then, Hitler attacked me and the Protestant church—and there was nobody left to be concerned.”
    —Martin Niemller (1892–1984)

    “These semi-traitors [Union generals who were not hostile to slavery] must be watched.—Let us be careful who become army leaders in the reorganized army at the end of this Rebellion. The man who thinks that the perpetuity of slavery is essential to the existence of the Union, is unfit to be trusted. The deadliest enemy the Union has is slavery—in fact, its only enemy.”
    —Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)